QUINTUS spring wheat retains its No.1 position as the highest yielding spring wheat variety with a relative rating of 105 vs Sparrow @ 102. 2015 was the first year that Goldcrop were able to offer Irish growers commercial seed of QUINTUS and the positive feedback we have received from growers about the variety was widespread. Not only is it high yielding, this bearded wheat also ripens early, has good disease resistance and good grain quality. It also shows good resistance to fusarium, a key trait which can be so useful in Ireland, especially in wet summers.

RGT DOUBLESHOT is also highly rated on the new spring wheat list with a relative yield of 102. It comes in as the top variety for quality grain, delivering the highest KPH (77.8), highest protein (11.6%), and highest hagberg falling number (340). These quality attributes make RGT DOUBLESHOT a first choice milling wheat which also exhibits good overall agronomic traits, thus making it easy to grow and manage.

SPARROW may appear to be outclassed by the newer and higher yielding varieties, but this old reliable still retains the best rating for straw strength, and is certainly a good choice on very fertile sites where lodging risk is high. It also holds very good grain quality along with good resistance to sprouting and good resistance to disease. It is a later maturing type so it’s best to sow SPARROW early if at all possible.

BINARY spring oats is the clear leader on yield on the new RL coming in with a rating of 109 vs Husky @ 105. This will be the 5th year in a row that BINARY has topped the list on yield, and now it also tops the list on kernel content (69.2%) and delivers the best mildew resistance of all varieties available (7). It is a larger grained oat than Husky or Barra (42.9 TGW), hence the bushel weight is 1 point lower than Husky @ 53.6 KPH. But BINARY still retains a lovely white colour and will mill / roll equally as well if used for animal feed or for human consumption.

BARRA is still going strong, and after 31 years on the list (must be a record!) it still retains the top position for bushel weight coming in at a massive 56.2 KPH. It is the sole variety being used by Glanbia for use in their oatmeal business that services both the Gluten-Free and the US Sturm Foods export markets, and it is well recognised internationally that nothing compares to its quality rating. In a market that is so much dictated by quality as measured by bushel weight, no doubt having an assembly of BARRA oats will always guarantee you a sale, regardless of the growing season !

PAUSTIAN spring barley was new to the market in 2015 and again the feedback from growers who had this variety last harvest was nothing but positive. It delivers high yields of quality grain with good straw strength and very good disease resistance (8 for mildew, and 7 for Rhynchosporium and Brown Rust). PAUSTIAN also exhibits very good early vigour and copes well in adverse conditions – a trait that was widely observed in May 2015 following heavy rain / cold weather during that time. It is an easy variety to grow and manage, and comes with a strong recommendation from Goldcrop for sowing in 2016.

SOLDO is an early maturing variety that delivers high yields of very high quality grain (66.9 KPH) and very good resistance to disease (8 for mildew, and 7 for Net Blotch and Brown Rust). It is a large-grained variety (53.3 TGW) that fills well and which would be ideal for use in rolled / coarse feeds.

FRONTIER is by far the longest serving variety on the RL and is now in its 12th year on the Irish market, demonstrating its robustness and resilience through all those seasons. It like Paustian (from same breeder) has also shown to be hardy in nature and capable of withstanding harsh spring conditions without any adverse effects on yield. The variety still remains very popular in Co.Wexford where it has found favour with many growers following years of consistent performance there.

Goldcrop will also be offering in 2016 small amounts of our new up-and-coming spring barley variety RGT PLANET which will hopefully be up for recommendation in spring 2017. To date in trials, RGT PLANET has delivered the highest yields of grain on a consistent basis and the variety is also widely approved as a malting barley in many countries around the globe. It is under final stages of evaluation in Ireland and Goldcrop are hopeful that it will be approved for use as a malting barley here very soon – watch this space for more details !!